


Learned the Score

by LupusScintilla (inkandblade)



Series: Bubblegum [9]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Derek Hale, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Hale Fire, Alternate Universe - Werewolves Are Known, Beta Derek Hale, Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski is the future, F/M, Gen, Gender Issues, Gender Roles, Light Angst, Mentions unhealthy relationship dynamics, Not Beta Read, Read the notes for info about the gender issues and unhealthy relationship dynamics, Songfic, This is a prequel but better read second, sheriff stilinski is a good man
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-30
Updated: 2018-07-30
Packaged: 2019-06-18 18:39:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15492201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkandblade/pseuds/LupusScintilla
Summary: “What we think doesn’t actually matter, does it? She seems to like you. You apparently like her. That’s all that’s important.”♠This is a prequel of sorts toThey Turned Down The Lights, but should probably be read after it.





	Learned the Score

“You should go now, you know, if you don’t want to get stuck here all night.” Erik reached out and grabbed the full tray Derek offered him, swinging it round to the bench to unstack the dishes and glasses and far, far too many napkins for two people to have used in any kind of normal manner.

Derek looked back over his shoulder to the restaurant. Half the tables were empty now, but there was a late movie due to end in about fifteen minutes. There’d be another rush, and—

“No.” Erik swatted him with the end of a thankfully-clean dish towel. “You know we can handle it. And I know you’re loitering for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with how many more burgers we’re going to serve tonight.”

Peter, ever present in the conversation, no matter how far away he actually was, looked up from the grille. “I don’t like the way your girlfriend smells, nephew. Your mother and father don’t like the way she smells. Your brothers don’t like it,” he nodded at Erik and Erik nodded back, “I hate to think what Laura will say when she meets her, but…” He flipped three burger patties in a row without looking at them. “What we think doesn’t actually matter, does it? She seems to like you. You apparently like her. That’s all that’s important.”

Derek huffed out what he hoped sounded like an agreement. The idea of being with someone that no one in the pack wanted to be near really didn’t sit right, but there was something about Jennifer that had drawn him in the first time he’d met her, and on the handful of group-dates they’d been on. There had been hand holding and kissing and a round of grope-and-grind that had ended up with both of them coming in the alley behind the cinema last week, but.

Tonight was a not-quite frat party at one of the big share-houses off campus. There was the possibility for a lot more than just hands in each others’ pants, and the probability that Jennifer would want a lot more. Derek wondered, again, as he pulled a change of clothes out of his locker, why he wasn’t hoping for a lot more. It was, as far as he was concerned, kinda fast, admittedly. They had only been on group dates, and he hadn’t actually introduced her to anyone in his pack—they only knew what she smelled like ‘cause they’d smelled her on him.

He stripped off his shirt, jeans and shorts and gave himself a sniff under the arms. He smelled like a werewolf who’d been working in a diner all afternoon. It was probably lucky Jennifer was a beta-human. It’s not as if she’d be able to tell. Which…

Derek tucked in his shirt and did up his boots and grabbed his jacket. There was a very good chance he’d be getting laid tonight.

This was a good thing, not a bad thing.

He patted the top-inside pocket of his jacket to reassure himself that there were, indeed, condoms there, and then went out front to call a cab.

♠

Derek took a moment in the front doorway to let his ears and his nose acclimatize. The music wasn’t actually that loud and there weren’t as many people as he’d feared there would be. But, the place still stank of beer and weed and ‘bane-juice and unwashed humans.

And sex. He nodded to a couple of the guys from his Thursday morning class and walked past a closed door that had, from the sound of it, people fucking against the otherside. At least they weren’t doing it in the hall.

A drink was definitely needed. He found the ‘bane-keg and reached for a cup and paused at what he saw. He so, so didn’t need this tonight.

Instead of the usual pile of red-solos, there were four stacks of different colored cups. It wasn’t the first time he’d seen this kind of set-up, but it was the first time he’d seen it with this set of choices. Usually the different colors were designated as _single_ , _taken_ , _DTF_ , and _complicated_. Tonight someone had decided to change that up to _Alpha_ , _Beta_ , _Omega_ , and _complicated_. The tower of the last, bright-green ones was at least twice as high as the others.

Derek grabbed himself a can of Coke instead and made his way out to the yard. Jennifer didn’t smoke, but a few of her friends did and student-house or not that tended to happen outside.

He heard them before he saw them, and decided quickly that that was a really, really good thing. It only took a few moments of listening to them before he felt his claws threatening to pop. It was a little over the top, even for him. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t been privy to this kind of conversation before, though. Some humans were seriously weird about gender and designations, going on about it as if it was some kind of lifestyle choice instead of simple biology.

Derek leaned against the faux-roman column he was next to and focused on keeping his breathing steady and slow as he listened. When he was younger this kind of conversation tended to get him quite distressed—enough to alert his Alpha mother over the pack bond. He was more likely to just get angry now, but even that could travel to her the same way if he wasn’t careful.

Jennifer and her friend Nicky seemed to be doing most of the talking in their little group.

“I mean, she didn’t actually have to choose the green cup, did she? No one would have doubted it if she’d picked the omega color.” Nicky was fake-whispering, as if the whole thing was too shameful to talk about, but still too juicy to not discuss.

Derek looked around the yard quickly, trying to see who was holding what was likely the lone green cup in the place. It really did stand out when you knew to look for it, even in the hands of the very relaxed looking woman who was drinking from it. Her skin was dark and smooth and her shaved head looked as good on her as the tight t-shirt that emphasized the fact that she wasn’t wearing a bra. She had the wide, round eyes of a stereotypical omega, but… Derek likely wouldn’t have noticed otherwise, but she was a little too broad across the shoulders to be called dainty, which was what society thought was an apt description for an omega female.

Jennifer snorted. “Really, Nicky? She doesn’t exactly have delicate frame, does she? I mean, that kind of build is more than fine if you’ve got the beta features to balance it out,” Derek imagined she was referring to her own body, of course, “but she really doesn’t. And that hair makes the lack of proportion that much more obvious.”

Derek tilted his head to the side and decided, again, that the woman’s hair, or lack of it, looked pretty fucking cool. He tried to focus on that instead of the fact that he was close to puncturing the damn soda can he was holding.

“Ergh.” That was a voice Derek didn’t recognize, but the tone was closer to Jennifer’s than Nicky’s. “Can you imagine being half-n-half? I mean, maybe we don’t get pregnant at the drop of a hat like a pure-omega does, but half-n-halfs can only manage it once a year.”

“I was in the library a week or two ago,” Jennifer took a sip of whatever it was she was drinking, “and I found myself a few tables away from one of those freak, mix-gen coalition things, yeah?” She overemphasised coalition, making it sound fake and unpleasant. None of the others made a sound, but Derek could imagine them all nodding their heads eagerly. “They were talking about only having one yearly heat as if it was a good thing, instead of being weird. Going on about the fact that it meant they didn’t need to worry about condoms breaking or be stressed about accidental-babies.”

Nicky answered this one so quickly that it couldn’t be something that they hadn’t all discussed before. “As if _accidental_ babies aren’t a good thing!”

Derek’s hackles were still up, but now he was curious, too.

“Exactly! Can you imagine not having that as an option? I mean—” Jennifer’s voice dropped a little, but she’d obviously had too much to drink and didn’t realize she really wasn’t whispering, “—can you imagine trying to bag the right kind of guy if you didn’t have the accidental-baby thing as bargaining chip? Then again, if he’s an alpha, and you’re a beta, you don’t even need that.”

She, and the others, snickered. Derek very carefully leaned over and put his soda-can down. He couldn’t trust himself to not shred it to pieces.

“My aunt just got herself a beautiful, new kitchen. She reckons her alpha will sign for just about anything when he’s in rut. And he’d never admit she tricked him, so even after it’s all over he doesn’t say a word. She’s well and truly got him by the knot.”

“Soooo much better than being an omega snivelling through heat or a broken half-n-half that doesn’t even get the pleasure of that.”

Derek’s dick shrivelled just a little bit further, but he felt the alpha side of himself clawing to the surface. There was only really one way to tackle this. He didn’t like confrontation, and if it was just about him he’d probably just walk away and let Jennifer figure out she’d been stood up.

This wasn’t just about him, though: there was the woman on the other side of the yard, his brother back at work, and so many others.

“So,” Derek started as he stepped out. His voice was probably a little loud, but it wasn’t as if the entire place wouldn’t be watching them in a few moments, anyway. “You don’t just have a problem with be-omes, Jennifer, but omegas, too? ” He nearly spat her name, his fangs itching to descend into the word.

“I,” she swallowed whatever was going to come out next.

“They’re just not…” Nicky started and stopped when he pinned her with a look.

“Well, Jennifer? That wasn’t a rhetorical question.”

She swallowed again and stepped back a touch, leaning against the wall fully. He hoped she felt the way she looked — framed for everyone in the backyard to watch.

A few more people had spilled out into the yard now. A verbal-sparring match always made for a good entertainment, after all.

“Answer me.” Derek tried to reign in his snarl, but wasn’t entirely successful. “You have a problem with be-omes?”

Jennifer looked up and practically batted her lashes as she answered. “I just. Omegas have such a difficult time with their heats. And it’s so much easier to be pure-gen. It must be so hard being— ”

“Hard?” he snapped. “The only thing hard about being an omega or mixed-gen is dealing with people like you.” He took a step back this time. He didn’t want to be within arms reach, and he was conscious of the fact that he could look pretty frightening, threatening even, when he was angry. He didn’t want anyone mistaking his sharp words or loud voice as a prelude to violence. “I had no idea you were so bigoted. I’m pretty happy right now that we never went on any actual dates.”

“I,” Jennifer reached out, but Derek pulled away even though she had no way of touching him at this distance. “Come on, Derek. We’re good together. Don’t let one little difference of—”

“No. I understand now.” This was not just a little difference of opinion. “You just want a big, strong alpha? You want someone you can lead by their knot and squeeze for everything they’ve got?”

The other two went as red as Jennifer. They’d obviously had no idea they’d been talking so loudly.

Derek turned and looked at the others in the yard. He wanted everyone, especially the woman with the green cup, and any of the other wolves here, to see this. He twisted so he was half facing Jennifer.

“You want someone big and strong like me, huh?” He breathed in and focused on his wolf and let it come to somewhere just below the surface. He felt his shoulders broaden and back lengthen and his thighs thicken. He would look taller now, stronger, far more _alpha_. “You want this?” The wolf had crept into his voice and he saw a couple of people flash their eyes, and he returned the acknowledgement: red and sharp and easy. Then he looked at Jennifer straight on and concentrated on feeling the link to his mother and knew from the gasps of shock all around that he’d done what he needed to.

He’d flashed his eyes beta blue. His phone vibrated in his pocket. He’d need to text his mom soon so she didn’t freak out.

Jennifer and all her little friends made the same squeaky, confused not-word-noise.

“Wha—”

Derek breathed out and let the wolf fade away. “I’d say it’s pretty obvious, wouldn’t you? My eyes flash red and blue. I’m alph-be.” He curled his lip and snarled at her with entirely human-looking teeth. “You realize that means you, a beta, would never, ever be able to make me knot? A be-ome might only be able to get me there once a year, but that would be once a year more than any of you.”

A voice from across the yard interrupted. “Hell, yes! One rut spent with a be-ome and you’ll be so satisfied you won’t need another one for a whole year!”  

Derek looked over his shoulder at the be-ome with the green cup and gave her a wide smile. A couple of the wolves who’d flashed their eyes at Derek leaned over and gave the woman a high-five.

Derek breathed out. Even if he’d made a spectacle of himself, seeing that kind of reaction was enough to make it worth it.

He looked back at Jennifer again, and made himself speak softly and clearly so there could be no mistake or accusations. “I’m leaving now. I’m going to block your number on my phone and do the same with your Facebook account. Don’t try to change my mind.”

He slipped his phone out of his pocket as he turned. Texting his mom to tell her he was fine and hadn’t actually meant to freak her out by tugging on the pack-bond like that was far more important than blocking Jennifer.

♠

Derek wasn’t going to walk all the way home, but he could make it back to the diner in time to help the guys put the garbage out and get a ride back that way.

The night air felt good on his skin, and the pull of the not-quite-round moon felt good in his gut.

He heard a car slowing down as it pulled in beside him and pulled his hands out of his pockets; the Sheriff Department’s cruisers had a hum about them that he figured was something to do with the light on the roof or all the radio equipment.

“Evening, son.”

Derek blinked at the guy as he leaned out the window. It was the actual Sheriff. Derek’s parents, and all the other wolves they knew, had been happy that this particular human had been elected this time. He was apparently one of the good ones.

“Good evening, sir.”

“You right there? It’s a way into town if you’d like a ride. I promise I won’t put you in the back.”

Derek let himself smile. “No, sir, but thank you. I,” he huffed out a breath and the Sheriff’s posture changed minutely. Huh. He didn’t think humans could be that attuned to other people. “I think I need the air. I just had a loud, um.” Could he call it a break-up if they hadn’t been dating? “Break-up of sorts. The walk back into town will do me good.”

“Bad break-up, or one of those ones you’re happy happened as soon as they did?”

“The latter.” Derek didn’t usually feel comfortable telling older humans this—they were more likely to judge—but there was something about the look on the Sheriff’s face and in his scent that said it was okay to. “I forget that there are still people who take issue with the fact that some of us are mixed-gendered. It made me pretty mad.”

The Sheriff nodded and he breathed in and out deep enough that it moved the star on his chest, the badge glinting in the moonlight. “There are always idiots in this world, son. Step away from them as gently as you can. As a law-man, I’m happy you’re choosing a sensible way to deal with your anger—exercise is a good thing. As a father,” his face brightened a little, “I’m glad you’re feeling okay. A young alpha like you, with a strong Alpha mother like yours, you’ve got a good family and a good pack behind you. You keep them in mind every time someone pushes your buttons, yeah? Keeps my blood level when I have to deal with crap like that.”

Derek didn’t know quite what to focus on first, there—the fact that the Sheriff obviously knew he was Talia Hale’s son, or the fact that the Sheriff had to deal with bigots himself. It certainly sounded like he had to anyway. He swallowed both questions and answered with a simple, “I’ll try, sir.”

“Excellent, Mr Hale.” The Sheriff flicked his turn-signal on to move back out onto the road. “Now, I’m off to get myself something for dinner. I’m not usually allowed to eat at your family’s restaurant ‘cause my son has me on a damned heart-healthy diet, but I might just let myself indulge tonight. I’ll let your brothers or uncle or whoever is there tonight know that you’re on your way, okay?”

**Author's Note:**

> The gender discrimination in this fic centers around Derek's girlfriend's bigotry. The bad/unhealthy relationship issues mention involve using someone's biological nature to coerce/manipulate them.
> 
> As writers we often use the A/B/O gender spectrum/designations to reflect or comment on gender and sexuality in the real world, but sometimes we fuck up when we do. If anything in this fic is offensive or triggering, it is not my intention. I’ve tried to tag as best I can; please let me know if I’ve missed anything.
> 
> Apologies for the lack of a beta-read. Pokes regarding typos etc are very welcome, here on on my tumblr if you'd prefer to message me privately. Thank you.  
>    
>  **♠♠♠**
> 
> This piece of Bubblegum was inspired by If You Don't Somebody Else Will - Sue Thompson: [Lyrics](http://www.songlyrics.com/sue-thompson/if-you-don-t-somebody-else-will-lyrics/), [YouTube](https://youtu.be/_TmhMfmh06g). As this is a continutation/prequel, I went looking for a song by the same artist as the original story. I think it's a pretty good match.
> 
> Find me on [Tumblr](http://inkandblade.tumblr.com/) (generally NSFW). Pokes regarding typos etc—especially as this isn't Beta-read—are very welcome. Thank you.
> 
> _Though I'm fine with people wanting to create most fanworks [art, podfic, fanmix, translations] of this story, I'd prefer that no direct "sequel" be written as I have my own planned (eventually). Thank you._


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